HUMANIORA: JOURNAL OF LINGUISTICS, LITERATURE & EDUCATION

Volume (1) No (1): 58-69

Available online at https://journal.unibos.ac.id/jlle

ISSN: 0000 0000

DOI: xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

58

Cultural Assimilation Among the Characters in Margaret Dillowy’s

Novel “How to be an American Housewife”

Amirul Hakim Kilwouw1*

, Dahlia D. Moelier1, Sudirman Maca

2

1English Literature Departement, Letters Faculty

2English Program, Postgraduated Universitas Bosowa

*Email: amirulhakimkilwouw@gmail.com

Accepted: 1st April 2021 / Approved 1st June 2021

Abstract

The aims of the research are to find out the assimilation portrayed through the characters in the

novel and to describe the impact of assimilation occurred towards the characters. The research

applied the library research to get as many data from the novel and some books containing

theories which connect to the research. The primary data was taken from Margaret Dilloway’s

Novel “How to be an American Housewife”. The data was analyzed by using sociological

approach and the theory of assimilation by Milton Gordon. The result shows that in the novel How

to be an American Housewife can be found three models of assimilation. There are the classic and

new assimilation model, the racial or disadvantaged model, and the segmented assimilation model.

Besides that, Assimilation process give the big impacts towards the main character in the novel,

Shoko and her daughter who grow up in the culture of American. The impacts cover almost all of

life aspects of the Shoko then make her has no choice. She wants or not, like or dislike she has to

accept the American culture and reduce her culture. She has to face many difficulties in daily life.

Key words; Assimilation, Margaret Dilloway, Cultural, Character, Novel

This work is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 CC-BY International license

1. INTRODUCTION Literature is a form of human expression. It is a product of writing in which there are

expression of thought, feeling, and attitude toward life. Reading a literary work will make

us more knowledgeable and experienced because literature helps us learn about life

including our problem, custom, habit, ambition, and desire. By reading a literary work, we

will gain some positive aspects.

One kind of literary works is Novel. According to NTC’s Dictionary of Literary Terms

(1991:149-150), a novel is a lengthy fictional narrative in prose dealing with characters,

incidents, and settings that imitate those found in real life. Usually the novel is concerned

with the depiction of middle class and working class characters rather than legendary

heroes engaged in such ordinary pursuits as falling in love, getting married, traveling,

making money, contending with their environment, with other characters, or with their

own limitations, and struggling for advancement in their society or profession. The author,

while obviously inventing people and situations, attempts to give the impression that he or

she is reporting the facts as they occurred. However, these are merely general

characteristics, not hard and fast requirements. Because of tremendous variety in type,

form, and subject matter, the novel resists neat and tidy classification.

In simple words, novel is a portrait of real life, manner, time in which it is written.

Moreover, a novel may attempt a detailed portrayal of life and it is shaping influence with

detach, objective perspective of science.

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The research focused on the assimilation among the characters reflected in Margaret

Dilloway’s novel How to be An American Housewife. Talking about assimilation, we deal

with the process by which individuals or groups take on the culture of the dominant

society, including language, values, and behavior, as well as the process by which groups

are incorporated into the dominant society.

The novel entitled How to Be an American Housewife is a novel about mothers and

daughters, and the pull of tradition. It tells the story of Shoko, a Japanese woman who

married an American GI, and her grown daughter, Sue, a divorced mother whose life as an

American housewife hasn't been what she'd expected. When illness prevents Shoko from

traveling to Japan, she asks Sue to go in her place. The trip reveals family secrets that

change their lives in dramatic and unforeseen ways. Offering an entertaining glimpse into

American and Japanese family lives and their potent aspirations, this is a warm and

engaging novel full of unexpected insight.

2. LITERATURE REVIEW

In conducting this research, the writer used some previous studies as references and

to support the research. The writer also utilized some other sources such as articles and

books that related to this study.

2.1. Previous Studies

In conducting this research, the writer selected five related previous study as

references for this research.

Berkers, (2014) studied International newspaper Netherlands and Germany. The

writer collected data by analyzing the review International newspaper. In analyzing the

data, the writer groups the data into the table, the writer indicates that only 20.3% (31) of

American newspaper reviews mentions the author’s ethnic minority background as

opposed to 47.2% (60) of Dutch and 58.2% (71) of German reviews. American reviews

differ significantly from both Dutch and German reviews.

Febriyanti, (2015) studied the selected song lyrics of Avenged Sevenfold. In taking

the data, the writer transcribed the lyrics of the songs, along with checking them to the

internet source, then observed the lyrics to find the phenomena of assimilation, reduction,

and elision. After that, she classified the observed phenomena in the lyrics based on the

phonological processes. From the data analysis, the results showed that there were three

processes found both in the first and second songs: assimilation, reduction and elision. The

difference is that in the first song, it has four kinds of assimilation, while from the second

song only has three kinds of assimilation.

Aulia, (2017) studied the Eric Liu’s accidental Asian novel. The writer used the

Hippolyte Taine Theory and the Sociology of Literature Theory. The writer used

qualitative method that the data is from quotation in the novel. The result of this research

describes the social life of a Chinese and several different races in facing the cultural

assimilation which caused by racial differences in America, how they deal with conflicts

caused by cultural assimilation in America, and how cultural differences can be accepted

there.

Riyanto, (2014) studied the a better life movies. The writer applies library research as

a type of research in which the writer obtains the data by watching the movie and reading

the script of the movie, reading the reference books connected to the object under study

and browsing the data related in the internet. The results of the analysis show that in

general, the second generation is more assimilated than the first generation as depicted in

the film a better Llife. There are subtle level differences in some of the sub-processes

assimilation experienced by the first and second generations. The difference occurs on the

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sub-process of cultural assimilation and secondary structural assimilation which refers to

achievement in work and education.

Kristiyowati, (2020) studied White Mughals Novel by William Dalrymple. This

research discusses the acculturation of British and Indian cultures in the novel White

Mughal. The results of the study found 4 cultural acculturations of British and Indian

cultures such as the acculturation of local traditions, buildings, how to dress, and mixed

marriages. The backgrounds of cultural acculturation in the novel are economic factors and

political factors. This research is library research. The methods used in this research as

well as other literary anthropological research focus on cultural acculturation and the

factors behind cultural acculturation in this novel.

2.2. Research Theory

Assimilation is a sociological term for the process by which two or more groups

having different attitudes, values, and customs become alike in these respects. As a result

of the process, the groups involved lose their sense of being clearly separated and come to

regard themselves as members of one larger society and culture.

Milton Gordon as quoted in Encyclopedia of Sociology (1996:276) stated that a

complete assimilation would mean no separate social structures based on racial or ethnic

concepts remained, and it covers seven variables, which are; change of cultural patterns to

those of the host society, large- scale entrance into institutions of the host society on the

primary group level, development of a sense of peoplehood based exclusively on the host

society, large-scale intermarriage, absence of prejudice, absence of discrimination, and

absence of value and power conflict. In his book, he also defined that assimilation may

require seven steps toward its ultimate conclusion, the blended society. Novel is a prose

article whose length contains a collection of stories of a person's life with those around him

and is given the character (character) of everyone who helps him.

3. METHODS Methodology is generally a guideline system for solving a problem, with specific

components such as phases, tasks, methods, techniques and tools. The type which the

writer used in this research is library research or known as a qualitative descriptive. It is

important for the writer to get as many data from the novel and articles which of course

connect to the research. In analyzing the data, the writer used sociological approach and

the theory of assimilation by Milton Gordon.

4. RESULTS

In accordance with the objective of this study, the writer devides the data into two

parts as follows:

4.1 The Assimilation Portrayed in the Novel “How to be an American Wife”

The classic and new assimilation model is the assimilation model where the minority

group coming to adopt the culture of the majority and thus becoming like them in terms of

values, ideology, behavior, and practices. The process of this model occurs spontaneously

and often unintended in the course of interaction between majority and minority groups

like what portrayed in the novel as follow:

4.1.1. The Classic and New Assimilations Models

Data 1: ” Adjusting to the U.S. was difficult in other ways for me, especially in the

beginning. If I borrowed an egg from a neighbor, I returned two, the Japanese way. They

didn’t understand; why did I give them two? It made them angry, like I was insulting them.

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When you “borrowed” an egg or a cup of sugar in America, you never actually returned it.

Charlie had to explain: “It’s her tradition.” (Dilloway, 2010:20)

Data 2: ”When Charlie wasn’t home to explain my odd ways to people, I went to the

store alone, with Mike bundled up in a thousand layers in his stroller. I made sure to dress

up. My favorite outfit was a pencil skirt, button-up black blouse with white pipe trim, and

heels. It wasn’t the most comfortable thing to take care of a child in, but I was young and

didn’t care. I wanted to look presentable, not like a maid or a Jap with buckteeth and wild

hair, but an American girl.” (Dilloway, 2010:20-21)

Data 3: “The spaghetti recipe was in the new American cookbook that Charlie gave

me, How to Be an American Housewife. Written in Japanese and in English, it also taught

the American way of housekeeping. I had never imagined that I would need such a book,

since my mother and my high school had prepared me for being an excellent wife, but I

had to admit, American ways were different”. (Dilloway, 2010:27)

Data 4: “Getting used to American negativity can be difficult. Americans do not

politely defer or help you save face; they simply say, “No,” loudly and emphatically. Being

aware of this phenomenon will help prevent shock. Japanese say “No” when they mean

“Perhaps.” Therefore, if you are talking in English to an American and you mean to say

“Perhaps,” you might accidentally say “No.” This is confusing to the American. Reserve

“No” for situations where you absolutely must respond in the negative; use “Perhaps” for

all other situations where you mean to give a gentle deferment”. (Dilloway, 2010:30)

Data 5: “Japanese culture is different from American. We do not forgive readily.

Sometimes we accept, which is different from forgiveness. In cases like this, where I’d

done something Taro thought was evil, the taint would cling to me forever. After the war,

my father and I accepted the reality of the new Japan. Even after the way it ended”.

(Dilloway, 2010:33)

Data 6: “In the Japanese household, it is assumed that the man will earn the money

and the woman will manage it to accommodate the family’s needs. American husbands

earn and manage money. Usually, an allowance will be given to his Wife to pay for

household items. The Wife must stay within the household budget. A Wife must not

challenge his maleness by taking over budgetary matters. Do not fall into the trap of acting

Japanese in this area”. (Dilloway, 2010:91)

Data 7: “If you married an American, it is likely you married a Christian. Most

holidays in the United States are Christian: Christmas and Easter being the major ones. In

general, these are times of good cheer and celebration. See the HOLIDAY section for

recipes and details on decorating the house during these times. For the sake of harmony, it

is imperative that the good Housewife become a Christian as well. Japanese women should

forget about their Buddhist or Shinto upbringing—these ways are not American ways. You

will not be able to find people to worship with you. If you continue to insist on praying to

Buddha statues, you will cause your husband to abandon you”. (Dilloway, 2010:94)

Data 8: “Child-rearing in America is a good deal more callous and cold than in

Japan. Americans do not believe in letting the baby sleep with them, or carrying them all

the time, the way a Japanese mother does. They take a far more disciplinarian approach to

child-raising than we do in Japan. Every mother must do what is best for her children and

her conscience, as well as adhere to the wishes of her husband. Ideally, the father leaves

such details to the mother, but this is not always the case”. (Dilloway, 2010:101)

Data 9: “As a young Japanese lady, you have been schooled in all the ways of

housekeeping. Your high school taught you how to arrange flowers, the fine art of fan

dancing, and how to launder and store kimonos. Now that you have married an American,

you might be at a loss as to certain American customs. How to iron a Western shirt. How

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to make a bed properly. If you were lucky enough to have worked as a maid in a Western-

style establishment, you may already know these things”. (Dilloway, 2010:110)

4.1.2. The Racial/Ethnic Disadvantage Model

Data 10: “Many American husbands enjoy traditional aspects of Japanese culture,

including the o-furo and the massage. American husbands expect their Wives to be well-

versed in massage as a Japanese tradition. Many men find that a small Japanese wife is an

asset when she walks on his back after a long, tiring day. Often when a Japanese person

begins consuming Western foods, they become fat. Do not overindulge. It is important to

keep oneself at a light enough weight so that the husband’s back is uninjured. The o-furo

may also be enjoyed by your husband. Offering to scrub his back as you would with a

Japanese spouse is likely to be welcomed. It is a small piece of service you may offer to

him”. (Dilloway, 2010:14).

Data 11: “When you marry and integrate with Americans, it is only natural not to

have friends. Most American women will dislike you. Perhaps looking for other Japanese

women will be possible, but probably not. Expect to be alone much of the time. Children

help relieve this melancholy”. (Dilloway, 2010:35)

Data 12: “Despite this, Charlie was a better husband than some other American men.

He had a steady Navy job that was enough money, especially when we lived in Japan. He

bought books for me and tried to learn Japanese. Another Japanese Navy wife I met in

Guam had a husband who made her sit behind him in the car, like they did in Japan. But if

Charlie had asked me to, I would have”. (Dilloway, 2010:36)

Data 13: “When you get your passport, you will notice that your race will be

classified as “Mongoloid,” although you are not from Mongolia. There is no point in

debating this. America consists primarily of Caucasians. It is understood without

explanation or question that in the United States a Japanese person will not be considered

an equal. If you married a non-Caucasian American, you will be considered in even a

lesser light. Therefore, you must work as hard as you can to prove yourself more than

equal—the most polite, the best worker, an adept English learner, the most well-turned-out

Housewife your husband could ever ask for. This is your duty, to both your home country

and to your new one”. (Dilloway, 2010:52)

Data 14: “It is important to support your husband’s work endeavors. In America, the

Wife tends to complain if the husband spends many hours at work. The Japanese Wife

should know this is only good and natural. The American Wife is too demanding. In the

majority of instances, working outside the home is frowned upon. If your husband wanted

to have an independent, working woman, he would have married an American. The Wife

lives within the home, keeping it tidy and organized, preparing meals for the family, and

keeping the children clean. In this way, you must live up to Japanese standards, not

American”. (Dilloway, 2010:74)

4.1.3. The Segmented Assimilation Model

Data 15: “I did not have the knack of subtlety. When she was a college sophomore,

Sue had come to me while I was in my bedroom one afternoon. She squeaked the door

closed, her face so pale, even in the golden light coming in from the west, that I thought

she was ill. She sat on my side of the bed, next to the photo of my parents. “What’s a

matter you, Suiko-chan?” I asked her. “Craig and I are going to move in together,” she

whispered. I was shocked. I shouted at her. “You do that,” I said, “and we no pay college

no more! You bring shame on us.” In my town, my family would never have been able to

show their faces again if I had done something so scandalous”. (Dilloway, 2010:18)

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Data 16: “Once, at age seven or so, she made cookies with me. “Measure flour.

Make flat with knife,” I said to her. She spilled the flour all over immediately, then the

sugar on the floor, then stuck a finger up her nose as she stood there, almost crying. I

couldn’t believe it. When I was seven, I was cooking and going to the shops alone, and my

child couldn’t even measure flour or tie a shoe”. (Dilloway, 2010:88-89)Data 17: “I

remembered when I taught her how to wash the dishes. She had been six or seven. When I

had been her age, I had done the laundry alone. “Use hot water, so hot make hands red,” I

had said to her, pouring a good amount of Palmolive into the sink. She had stood on a stool

and dipped her hands into it. She looked at me with her wide eyes. “It’s too hot to touch.”

“Not too hot for me.” I put my hand in to show her. “Hot water get off gunk, see?” I

dipped a plate that had dried beans on it into the water to show her. “Now take rag and

scrub.” I watched her make mounds out of the soap. “Mom, this is boring,” she said in a

whiny voice after a second. “Besides, it’s still too hot”. (Dilloway, 2010:30)

Data 18: “Mom usually refused to meet my gaze. It was rude in Japan to make eye

contact, and somehow I had learned this habit from her by osmosis. I grew up being told

by my teachers, “Look adults in the eye when you talk to them.” My mother would get

angry with me if I did”. (Dilloway, 2010:121).

Data 19: “Children who learn Japanese and English will speak English like their

mothers with an accent. This is, of course, not desirable. Teaching two languages may also

confuse them as to their identity. They are Americans and should learn only English, as

Americans do”. (Dilloway, 2010:123).

4.2 The Impacts of Assimilation Towards the Character in the Novel “How to be an

American Housewife”

The assimilation which happens because of marriage will give impacts for married

couples and their descendants as described through some characters in the novel as follow :

4.2.1. Shoko

Data 1: Sometimes I thought I had chased her out of the house too soon, been too

hard on her the way I had been too easy on her brother. It seemed both parenting methods

had failed.

Data 2: I wanted to look presentable, not like a maid or a Jap with buckteeth and

wild hair, but an American girl.

Data 3: Jackie smiled politely and I back at her. “Hi, Shoko, how are you?” “Very

well, thank you.” I used my softest, most pleasant voice. “Jackie. I bring popacor-nu barus

to party.” “What’s that?” Jackie said, not moving her lips from the smile. “Popacor-nu

barus.” She blinked. “I’m sorry. One more time?” “Popacor-nu. Barus.” I made the shape

with my hands. Jackie was silent, her head cocked to the side, the smile fading. The other

mothers watched. Did they not understand, either? Mike had come back and was standing

in the dirt by the bleachers, watching “It’s popcorn balls!” he shouted. “What the hell is so

hard to understand? You people are stupid. This team is stupid.” He threw his hat down.

Data 4: The spaghetti recipe was in the new American cookbook that Charlie gave

me, How to Be an American Housewife. Written in Japanese and in English, it also taught

the American way of housekeeping. I had never imagined that I would need such a book,

since my mother and my high school had prepared me for being an excellent wife, but I

had to admit, American ways were different.

Data 5: The doorbell sounded. “Come on in,” Lorraine said. It was the woman who

lived across the street, Charlene. We smiled politely at each other. “Sorry, Lorraine, didn’t

know you were busy.” She fiddled with her red curls. “You’re not interrupting at all,”

Lorraine said. I glanced at Lorraine, hurt, realizing that for all the times I popped in, she

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never did the same. “I was going to run to the mall. You want to come with?” Charlene

avoided my eyes. “Sure. Let me get my purse.” Lorraine launched up from the chair. I

waited for them to ask me to go. Of course, they did not. I could have invited myself, but

why? So I could tag along? “Thank you for Coke.” I put the glass down on the table, where

someone who was not Lorraine would pick it up later. “You want us to get you anything?”

Charlene asked. “We could stop at the grocery, too.”

Data 6: When you get your passport, you will notice that your race will be classified

as “Mongoloid,” although you are not from Mongolia. There is no point in debating this.

America consists primarily of Caucasians. It is understood without explanation or question

that in the United States a Japanese person will not be considered an equal. If you married

a non-Caucasian American, you will be considered in even a lesser light. Therefore, you

must work as hard as you can to prove yourself more than equal the most polite, the best

worker, an adept English learner, the most well-turned-out Housewife your husband could

ever ask for. This is your duty, to both your home country and to your new one.

Data 7: When you marry an American, it is not to be expected that every person in

your family will be happy for you. Some still cling to oldfashioned precepts of Japanese-

ness. They may shun you. It does not matter. You have embraced the modern reality of

what it means to be Japanese. They are the ones who will be left behind. Remember this,

and do not be ashamed.

Data 8: Once, at age seven or so, she made cookies with me. “Measure flour. Make

flat with knife,” I said to her. She spilled the flour all over immediately, then the sugar on

the floor, then stuck a finger up her nose as she stood there, almost crying. I couldn’t

believe it. When I was seven, I was cooking and going to the shops alone, and my child

couldn’t even measure flour or tie a shoe.

Data 9: For the first years of my marriage, it had been my handbook, my guide to

doing everything. Rules for living, American style. Sometimes it was right, and sometimes

it was not. Sometimes I liked it, and sometimes I didn’t. But that was just like life . You

don’t always get to do what you want, do you?

Data 10: If you married an American, it is likely you married a Christian. Most

holidays in the United States are Christian: Christmas and Easter being the major ones. In

general, these are times of good cheer and celebration. See the HOLIDAY section for

recipes and details on decorating the house during these times. For the sake of harmony, it

is imperative that the good Housewife become a Christian as well. Japanese women should

forget about their Buddhist or Shinto upbringing—these ways are not American ways. You

will not be able to find people to worship with you. If you continue to insist on praying to

Buddha statues, you will cause your husband to abandon you.

Data 11: In Japan, community is everything. Here I had nothing, no one, only my

immediate family. I spent my years growing up poor, but we still attended every picnic and

festival with the whole community.

4.2.2. Suiko (Sue)

Data 1: But you need see this guy. If I you, I grab him up! Single doctor won’t last

long.” I tried to keep my voice light, but my daughter didn’t understand. A single doctor

really wouldn’t last long. Sue snorted. “Mom, please. I can find my own man.”

Data 2: I remembered when I taught her how to wash the dishes. She had been six or

seven. When I had been her age, I had done the laundry alone. “Use hot water, so hot make

hands red,” I had said to her, pouring a good amount of Palmolive into the sink. She had

stood on a stool and dipped her hands into it. She looked at me with her wide eyes. “It’s

too hot to touch.” “Not too hot for me.” I put my hand in to show her. “Hot water get off

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gunk, see?” I dipped a plate that had dried beans on it into the water to show her. “Now

take rag and scrub.” I watched her make mounds out of the soap. “Mom, this is boring,”

she said in a whiny voice after a second. “Besides, it’s still too hot.”

Data 3: Mom usually refused to meet my gaze. It was rude in Japan to make eye

contact, and somehow I had learned this habit from her by osmosis. I grew up being told

by my teachers, “Look adults in the eye when you talk to them.” My mother would get

angry with me if I did. “No respect,” she would mutter.

Data 4: Marriage happened even though Craig’s parents advised degrees first.

“Living together first wouldn’t be the worst idea ever,” his mother told us. “Share

expenses, see if you can get along.” I blanched. My parents weren’t nearly so liberal. “You

live with him, no married, you kill Daddy!” Mom shouted at me when I brought it up. “We

stop pay college if do that!”

Data 5: When I was a child, I wasn’t allowed to go to slumber parties until I was ten.

Once I turned twelve, I was forbidden again. Mom said, “You never know. You pretend

spend night at someone’s house and be somewhere else.” “But I would never do that!” I

swore up and down, finally appealing to my father for assistance. He told me to respect my

mother. I shouldn’t have been surprised. Mom wasn’t like any of the other mothers. My

friends came over with a mix of anxiety and anticipation. “Will we have to bow? Take our

shoes off? Kneel on the floor?” my friend Shauna asked “Just the shoes,” I said.

4.2.3. Toyoko

Data 1: Toyoko and I did everything together for the next year. We tried to learn

English better. There were no classes offered, at least none that we could easily get to, so

Charlie got us a couple of textbooks, and we tried to study those.

Data 2: Toyoko and I wrote regularly for years. Jim got transferred to Yokosuka,

Japan, and I thought she must be thrilled. She was not. The other Japanese wives won’t

talk to me because Jim is black, she wrote. I miss you, Shoko.

4.3.4. Charlie

Data 1: Adjusting to the U.S. was difficult in other ways for me, especially in the

beginning. If I borrowed an egg from a neighbor, I returned two, the Japanese way. They

didn’t understand; why did I give them two? It made them angry, like I was insulting them.

When you “borrowed” an egg or a cup of sugar in America, you never actually returned it.

Charlie had to explain: “It’s her tradition.”

Data 2: Charlie knew more Japanese than my father knew English. Charlie had

gotten books on Japanese and studied them in an effort to communicate with me. He had a

kimono made for himself. He waited at the shrine while I prayed and wrote a prayer for

himself in awful Japanese letters. He tried hard.

5. DISCUSSION

How to be an American Housewife” is the story about Shoko, a Japanese woman

who married with an American, named Charlie at the end of World War II. Moving to

America after getting married made her must to adapt with a new culture which really

different with her culture especially to raise her children who grew up in American culture.

The process that was experienced by Shoko to adapt with the new culture is one of the

efforts to reduce differences between her culture and her husband culture with the aim to

involve both culture run together especially in their household.

The process by which two or more groups having different attitudes, values, and

customs become alike in these respects like Shoko and many characters experienced in the

novel called assimilation. The assimilation portrayed in the novel analyzed by using Milton

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Gordon theory who revealed three major theories of immigrant and ethnic-group

integration. The theories are the classic and new assimilation models, the racial/ethnic

disadvantage model, and the segmented assimilation model.

The classic and new assimilation model is the assimilation model where the minority

group coming to adopt the culture of the majority and thus becoming like them in terms of

values, ideology, behavior, and practices. The process of this model occurs spontaneously

and often unintended in the course of interaction between majority and minority groups. In

the novel, can be seen that the minority group, Shoko (main character) adopt many things

like the ethic in borrowing goods, how to dress, cook, raise children, greet a new people,

the burial process, and even the beliefs held by most of Americans. In the other hand,

assimilation makes the minority groups like Shoko has no choice and have to adopt the

culture of majority groups as their culture then they can run their life in the new land,

America.

In the racial or diasdvantaged model showed that the minority group has to accept

the American culture which just applies for them, the people who have different culture

with American. In the segmented model showed that the generations of those who

experienced assimilation process, in this case, Shoko’s daughter prefer to adopt the culture

of majority groups in the new land, American culture than the culture of minority groups,

Japanese culture. It happen because they have socialized with majority groups in the long

term then some of the cultures which considered as the impolite or scandalous thing in

minority groups’ culture are considered as natural things for them like living together

before marriage.

Assimilation process give the big impacts towards the people who come to new land

as minority group. Not only for them but also for their generation who grow up in the

culture of majority groups. The impacts cover almost all of life aspects of the minority

group then make them have to face many difficulties in daily life. They want or not, like or

dislike they have to accept the new culture which exist in new land then they can feel

comfortable living for a long time in the new land as what Shoko experienced in the novel,

she has to accept the rejection of American towards her then she was hard to get a friend in

America. Besides that, she has to accept the culture which for her is a scandalous thing

based on her culture. Assimilation is not an easy thing for those who experienced it. They

have to learn many new things even they have to reduce their culture so that they can look

similar with the majority groups in a new land.

6. CONCLUSION After the writer analyzed How to be an American Housewife, there is something that

can be concluded. The general conclusion is in the novel How to be an American

Housewife can be found three models of assimilation. There are the classic and new

assimilation model, the racial or disadvantaged model, and the segmented assimilation

model. Besides that, assimilation process give the big impacts towards some of characters

in the novel especially for the main character, Shoko who come to new land, America as

minority group. Not only for her but also for their generation who grow up in the culture of

majority groups as Sue, Shoko’s daughter experienced in the novel. The impacts cover

almost all of life aspects of the minority group then make them have no choice. They have

to face many difficulties in daily life. They want or not, like or dislike they have to accept

the new culture which exist in new land then they can feel comfortable living for a long

time in the new land. Even it can make them reduce their culture so that they can look

similar with the majority groups, the people in a new land.

Cultural Assimilation Among The…..(Amirul Hakim Kilwouw, Dahlia D. Moelier, Sudirman Maca)

Doi: xxxxxxxxxxxxx

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